| EPA Draft Greenhouse Gas Rule Focuses on Large Emitters U.S. EPA has sent a draft rule to the White House that could limit regulations on greenhouse gas emissions to cover only very large industrial sources.The agency yesterday submitted a rule to the White House Office of Management and Budget that experts say will likely limit strict permitting requirements to industrial sources of more than 25,000 tons a year of carbon dioxide equivalent. [More] rss.sciam.com |
Pollution's Toll on the Brain In these days of hybrid cars and carbon credits, it is common knowledge that substances exhaled by autos and coal plants are harmful to our respiratory system. What may be surprising is the degree to which they may harm the brain--in some instances, as much as exposure to lead. A recent string of studies from all over the world suggests that common air pollutants such as black carbon, particulate matter and ozone can negatively affect vocabulary, reaction times and even overall intelligence.The most recent of these studies found that New York City five-year-olds who were exposed to higher levels of urban air pollutants known as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) while in the womb exhibited an IQ four points lower than those subjected to less PAH. Alarmingly, “the drop was similar to that seen in exposure to low levels of lead,” says epidemiologist Frederica Perera, director of the Columbia Center for Children’s Environ­mental Health and head author of the study, in which mothers wore personal air monitors during their pregnancy. The IQ change was enough of a dip to affect school per­formance and scores on standardized tests. [More] rss.sciam.com |
Genetic testing may become a new weapon in the fight against chimpanzee smugglers DNA testing could be used as a tool to help fight smuggling of endangered chimpanzees, according to a study published this week in the journal BMC Ecology . [More] rss.sciam.com |
Bill McKibben's Eaarth Writer and activist Bill McKibben talks to Scientific American 's Mark Fischetti about his new book Eaarth: Making A Life On A Tough New Planet . [More] rss.sciam.com |
Testing Idea of Public Enforcing a Public Smoking Ban Some New York City officials say the public could help enforce a proposal to extend limits on outdoor smoking. nytimes.com |